College Dining Hall

[berrymarymac]

I am currently having issues with my dining service at my school. I am required to have it, even if I do not eat the food because I am vegan. and EVERYTHING is cooked in butter!!

Anyways, my parents are spending $1,100 for this crappy meal plan. I will need a doctor's note to the dietitian here and they will discuss the matter. I know that they will simply say that I can eat at the salad bar, but it's so disgusting and the food is old. It's nasty!!

here is the link for the meal items:
http://www.campusdish.com/en-US/CSS/Berry/Menus/RFoCDiningHall.htm

Here is a comment I made last year when I was a vegetarian:
Comments: "It would be nice to not have the same food for lunch and
dinner. What I had for lunch...I end up eating at dinner. Also more
vegetarian options, same as before...eating the same food day in and day
out is sickening. There needs to be more options for everyone, the same
food is getting boring."

This was the response:
"Thank you for taking the time to send me your suggestion.
I will share your suggestions with my management team, but a little more
information from you would help. Just to let you know we reengineer the
menus every semester to offer a new variety of options.
The comfort line changes between breakfast, lunch and dinner. The Pizza
line serves three and sometimes four different types between lunch and
dinner. The deli line has three different meats and two to four spreads
to choose from. The grille line has chicken breast as a constant and
rotates between burgers, hot dogs and different type of sandwiches.
With you suggestions, we will look and see how to keep the food from
getting boring."

Someone missed the point about Mary being a vegetarian, now didn't they?

And I know my endocrinologist doesn't really like my diet. I was going to tell him about it, he was kinda like "yeah yeah. that's all good. continue with it." So he doesn't know much!

any ideas? My mom told me to give up. I also have a friend who just had heart surgery and they are giving her **** too!

[eatyourbroccoli]

i ended up paying $1800 for a meal plan last spring semester that i never even got the CARD to.

its YOUR body and you have the right to put whatever and to NOT put whatever you choose into it. its terrible it sometimes can cost thousands of dollars to stand your ground..but soon things will be different. id try going the route of "im not going to pay for this" as opposed to trying to get them to offer you things youre willing to eat.

my suggestion: try to find a doctor somewhere in your area that supports veganism, if not raw itself, and get him to write a letter asking them to exempt you for medical reasons.

good luck to you

[berrymarymac]

i ended up paying $1800 for a meal plan last spring semester that i never even got the CARD to.

its YOUR body and you have the right to put whatever and to NOT put whatever you choose into it. its terrible it sometimes can cost thousands of dollars to stand your ground..but soon things will be different. id try going the route of "im not going to pay for this" as opposed to trying to get them to offer you things youre willing to eat.

my suggestion: try to find a doctor somewhere in your area that supports veganism, if not raw itself, and get him to write a letter asking them to exempt you for medical reasons.

good luck to you

Wow, that's awful!

Well, on my campus, if you live in the dorms I live in...you have to get a minimum meal plan of 7 meals a week with 350 flex bucks. And if I don't pay for it...well, then my schedule will be put on hold. It's sorta placed into my tuition bill for my parents. So I'm stuck with it because of where I live, which is ridiculous!

I will try and find a doctor here, but in a small town in Georgia, not many know what the word vegan or vegetarian means. Thanks for the ideas!

[DavidZaneMason]

Opinion:

-I hear you. Sounds very frustrating.

-Depending on how important diet is in your life....this is the kind of issue that involves a lot of pre-planning. You know what I mean? If you don't like to be "told" what to eat....then you have to be real careful joining the army.......or getting thrown in prison....or choosing to go to a school with a pre-determined, inflexible, low-grade eating plan! Ha! ha!

-The above suggestions are good ones. You can:

a) Forgo the meal plan completely (and perhaps sell your card or privileges or something)....and just eat what you want on you own time.

b) As stated above, you work with the administration and/or a doctor to provide you with specialized meals.

c) You go to another school and/or live in another area that CAN provide you with what you need is vital.

-What do you think?

-David Z. Mason

[berrymarymac]

Those are some great ideas, but when I applied to this college...well, the food was amazing before hand! I went to one of the camps here and everything was perfect. We ate the college food with the students. Then they changed over to a company called Aramark.

I currently have many many scholarships and basically only have to pay for housing and the meal plan, which is good for a college with its price tag! So I cannot go to another school, plus I love the college, aside from it's meal plan.

And about selling my card, it's not as simple as that. We have a student I.D. that looks like a debit card almost. So everything is on there. No selling meal plans, no forgoing them. I'm basically stuck. But I did email the director and he said he was going to talk to the chef about vegan options...so it's a start.

[Conscious Midwife]

from the body of yourfirst quoted statements o the cafeteria manager I can't tell that you mentioned you were vegetarian. Additionally yopu really do have to be specific. Some folks just don't know and will give you a bean burrito full of lard and wonder why you're upset.

Anyway. Do your meal swipes have a limit on when you use them? For instance if you purchased the minimum of 7/ week can you use 3 in a day or would you have to spread them out to one per day? This way you could take a friend whose limited on swipes and havve her reimburse you for the lunch.

Are you allowed to go selections?

Is it possible to dine in an enjoy oatmeal or juice and toast for breakfast and then take several fruit pieces to go with you?

Definately keep witing letters and when you do, write just one and CC it to everyone. Be specific, suggest brands, options etc...

You may say "please consider selling 8 Continents individual servings of soy milk for those of us with lactose intolerance..."

or "as a non meat eater I would enjoy options made with Morning Star products and/ or a greater variety of fresh vegetables to include portabella mushrooms, edive and grape tomatoes..."

Maybe next year you can live off campus and by pass the meal card option, get a roommate who is like minded with respect to dietary intake and begin an easier journey of enjoying live foods.

As Revvell always says, don't forget to

PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD :D

[Pierre]

Berry College? They don't have many berries on the menu :confused:

Some colleges have a separate kitchen where Jews prepare kosher food. Could you find some other people who eat as you do and do something similar?

[RowanC]

Do you HAVE to purchase the meal plan?
My son is in college and it was an option, not a requirement, to purchase the meal plan.

I'm managing to get by very comfortably with just a small dorm refrigerator.
Maybe you don't need it.. you could use that cash to purchase organic veggies every day!

[Amberly]

At my school you HAD to have the meal plan if you lived in the dorm. I wasn't a careful eater then, but if I lived there now I would make it a big issue. Get a lawyer. It's the only way I have been able to get anything done with Arkansas State University. They are rotten and will take you for every thing they can. :mad:

[berrymarymac]

RowanC: It is a requirement because I live in the regular dorms. We have no choice, it is definitely required of me to have it unless I get exempted. We have a kitchen in my dorm where I make some of my foods, but am not working on simple foods, such as fruits and veggies as is. I have a large dorm fridge filled with foods and I have enough to simply eat here in my dorm.

lifeAgift, we can either eat in or get it to go. No taking anything out of the dining hall, except for two fruit items, which I found out one day after trying to smuggle some bananas out. I got away with 20-30 apples one day for a friend. I will also try to be more specific with my suggestions. My friend just got invited to the food committee, so I will run ideas through her. Next year I will be living in a townhouse on my campus, so I can forfeit my meal plan then. Also my roommate sorta doesn't like my diet, she thinks I'm crash dieting and that it is unhealthy because I eat very little...but eat too many bananas.

Pierre, no they don't. But when they have waffles, they will give me a large bowl of berries from the line, which are amazing! fresh cut and everything! I have only met one girl who knows about the raw vegan diet on my campus actually, but quit it a year ago. I was going to ask her, but didn't want to bother her. I really have yet to meet a vegan on my campus. Most of my friends ask me what one is, which I am happy to explain to anyone. And we maybe have a few Jewish students, I don't know and have never met in on this campus. It's a college based on Christian values, not Christian, but we just don't have many Jewish students.

I'm beginning to feel like this is a lost cause at my school. They did finally get more vegetarian option and they put asterisks by the items that are vegetarian on the menu. I would be happy to give them ideas, recipes, anything to help them with my life style.

[portiz]

Tough, isn't it? But don't think it's a lost cause. Some of the suggestions here aren't so bad, maybe soemthing will come of your friend on that committee. I remember and don't miss those days, so I feel for you!
I wasn't RAW back then but I do remember the quality of MOST of the food. The thing on my campus was that some of the cooks were students themselves that were in school to become chefs!! :eek: :confused:
I think I was always in the dessert table.
Anyway, at least you've made other arrangements for next year. Thank goodness your spring break should be coming soon!

Hang in there!!

[berrymarymac]

Tough, isn't it? But don't think it's a lost cause. Some of the suggestions here aren't so bad, maybe soemthing will come of your friend on that committee. I remember and don't miss those days, so I feel for you!
I wasn't RAW back then but I do remember the quality of MOST of the food. The thing on my campus was that some of the cooks were students themselves that were in school to become chefs!! :eek: :confused:
I think I was always in the dessert table.
Anyway, at least you've made other arrangements for next year. Thank goodness your spring break should be coming soon!

Hang in there!!

Yes!! I am actually going to Disney and will be happy with my food there. I wish we had a program for chefs...it would be better than our food now! It was very high quality, the college used to do all of the food, before they brought in another supplier. My friend on the committee actually cannot have a lot of sodium and the food is packed with it. She has a very limited diet right now because she just had invasive heart surgery!

[Raw Magwene]

I had a similar issue, but with food allergies, when I was an undergrad. For me, the solution was to move off-campus. Is that feasible for you?

You might have to have a reason that sounds good to the college employees who deal with housing...I was lucky to get assigned to a sympathetic soul (his daughter had food allergies too.)

Best of Luck.

[klomasius]

How I cringed when I read your situation!

Sounds like it'll be an uphill, just try to keep your temper whatever you do.

Can you go straight to the top and give them stunning information on how a diet high in fresh fruit and veg is far healthier than processed foods?

Also, here in Australia, it is illegal to discriminate against someone for their beliefs/practices etc. So in order to get more veg*n options in schools, colleges etc. some people have resorted to saying they are Buddhist so the organisation cannot be seen to discriminate against them with regard to vegetarian food and their beliefs.

I know this is not optimal, but it's a thought!

And you know what, the more people that bring the diet thing up with them, the more they will be pressured into offering healthier options.

Who knows, maybe you won't be succesful, but you might just pave the way for others that come after you.

[berrymarymac]

So, an update:

I recently sent out an email to them about vegan options and today when I arrived at dining hall the man I have been discussing my concerns to asked me what I was going to eat. I said, just a salad (which didn't taste right anyways for some reason!). I was very polite and he said that the talk to all the management has been adding vegan options! Well I told him I had sent the director an email and he said it's the talk in dining hall now! I am very excited about this, it is a major change for the college I think. I told him I would be happy to give them recipes, to help them as much as I could.

I also smuggled perhaps 7 bananas, 10 apples, 5 oranges and two lemons out of dining hall...I felt smug. I mean, I'm paying for this food and no one eats the fruit anyways!

[RawNut]

It looks like things are moving in the right direction! Have you thought of founding a veg club? Odds are, there are more of you there - just less vocal, as MANY of us are.

Craig
__________________
Raw Paleo Diet (http://www.rawpaleoforum.com)

[berrymarymac]

It looks like things are moving in the right direction! Have you thought of founding a veg club? Odds are, there are more of you there - just less vocal, as MANY of us are.

Craig

Hmm, I've never really thought about that! I will talk to my vegetarian friends about the idea and find more people on campus who are vegetarians or better yet vegans. It would be a great idea! Thanks!!

[Conscious Midwife]

Hmm, I've never really thought about that! I will talk to my vegetarian friends about the idea and find more people on campus who are vegetarians or better yet vegans. It would be a great idea! Thanks!!

If you want to get radical, and I don't mean that in a bad way, you can contact PETA and the folks there will give you lots of resources/ materials for getting started on a veggie campaign

[berrymarymac]

If you want to get radical, and I don't mean that in a bad way, you can contact PETA and the folks there will give you lots of resources/ materials for getting started on a veggie campaign

Okay, my mom is actually a member of PETA and my friend is converting to vegetarian, then slowly into vegan because she found out she is diabetic. So I mean, word get around.

[Conscious Midwife]

Looks like all you gotta do now is connect the dots

get a flyer approved and get your campus group going a petition started and yummy real food will be manifest.

GO FOR IT!!!!!

[JGex]

If you want to get radical, and I don't mean that in a bad way, you can contact PETA and the folks there will give you lots of resources/ materials for getting started on a veggie campaign

In Georgia, I've been told, PETA stands for People Eating Tasty Animals.

:p

Honestly, I'm still trying to get past the part where schools can mandate that students in the regular dorms buy the dining program. Wowsa.

[berrymarymac]

In Georgia, I've been told, PETA stands for People Eating Tasty Animals.

:p

Honestly, I'm still trying to get past the part where schools can mandate that students in the regular dorms buy the dining program. Wowsa.

Yes, I have heard this many times before and had a rude guy on my van today tell someone what he did to a girl when she told him she was a vegetarian.

And my college is not good at things, they mandate that we do a lot of things...it's just the way things are and the way they shouldn't be!

I have some support for this idea of forming a student group on campus. If we can have a unicycle club, then we can have a veggie one!

[JGex]

Yes, I have heard this many times before and had a rude guy on my van today tell someone what he did to a girl when she told him she was a vegetarian.

Ugh. I won't even ask.... I've encountered some pretty abrasive and rude people up here myself. I attribute it to ignorance.


And my college is not good at things, they mandate that we do a lot of things...it's just the way things are and the way they shouldn't be!

I have some support for this idea of forming a student group on campus. If we can have a unicycle club, then we can have a veggie one!

Agreed!! I wish you luck with that. The more that a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle can be exposed to the above-mentioned ignorant people, the more it will come to be accepted and not ridiculed or dismissed.

Just to clarify, when I use the word "ignorant," I'm not saying people are stupid... they've just never been exposed to or learned about whatever the subject at hand may be.